Anti-Israel protesters wave Palestinian flags as students and employees of the University of Amsterdam protest against the ongoing war in Gaza and the university leadership after police broke up a student protest camp overnight, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, May 7, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw

Police moved in to end an anti-Israel protest at the University of Amsterdam on Monday after protesters occupied university buildings in various Dutch cities to condemn Israel’s war in Gaza, ANP news agency reported.

In local media footage, the students can be heard chanting at the police: “We are peaceful, what are you?” and “Shame on you.”

Earlier on Monday, a Dutch protest group said it had occupied university buildings in the Dutch cities of Amsterdam, Groningen, and Eindhoven.

The group told Reuters via email that the occupations would continue until the police broke them up and that the protesters would keep returning until the university meets their demands “for transparency [as well as] boycotting and divesting from Israeli institutions.”

In a post on social media site X/Twitter, Amsterdam police said the university had filed a police report against the protesters for acts of vandalism.

Police are making sure no one can enter the university buildings and will ask protesters to leave the premises voluntarily.

A spokesperson for the University of Amsterdam (UvA) confirmed the occupation and said it had advised people not affiliated with the protest to leave the building.

The Eindhoven University of Technology confirmed that there were “dozens of students peacefully protesting outside next to ten to 15 tents.” The University of Groningen did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Footage from local media showed a few tents in front of one of the university buildings.

Students in the Netherlands have been protesting against Israel’s war against the Hamas terror group in Gaza since last Monday and Dutch riot police had previously clashed with protesters at the University of Amsterdam.

Students in the United States and Europe have been holding pro-Hamas demonstrations calling for an immediate permanent ceasefire and for schools to cut financial ties with companies linked to Israel.